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As homelessness rises in West Sacramento, city leaders voted Wednesday to create a department dedicated to coordinating outreach, housing assistance and other services for people living without shelter.
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The City Council approved the Homelessness Response and Support Department in an effort to streamline services previously spread across four city departments.
“Homeless response is complex work that touches public health, housing, public safety, and the quality of our shared spaces,” Assistant City Manager for Community Services Ariana Adame said in a news release. “Giving it a dedicated department means the people doing this work have the leadership, support, and clear direction they need to make a lasting difference for our community.”
The 2026 Point-In-Time count identified 358 people experiencing homelessness in West Sacramento, including 159 in shelters and 199 who were unsheltered. That represents an increase of nearly 24% since 2024, when 289 people were counted, 105 in shelters.
Previously, several departments handled homelessness response and support services, including Parks and Recreation, Economic Development and Housing, Police and Public Works. As a result, decisions were not always made efficiently or in coordination with other departments, according to a staff report. The fragmented structure also disqualified the city from some grant opportunities that required applicants to demonstrate a coordinated approach to outreach, support and enforcement related to homelessness.
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The new department will oversee the city’s homelessness response efforts, including outreach and engagement, encampment cleanup, property management, emergency housing, administration, mental health services and public safety. It will work with state and county agencies while consolidating expertise within a single department.
The new structure will also increase accountability by placing responsibility for homelessness services under one department, according to the staff report.
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The council voted to transfer personnel and funds from four existing departments involved in homelessness response to the new department. It also approved about $1.2 million in additional spending to establish the department.
Most of the new spending comes from Measure O funds. West Sacramento voters approved the one-cent sales tax in 2024 to support general city services.
The city will transfer 20 existing positions to the new department and create three leadership positions: a department director, a business manager and a field response supervisor. The council also approved job descriptions for the new positions Wednesday.
The city identified centralizing homelessness services under a new department as a priority in its 2026 strategic plan.
“Our council made a promise in the strategic plan to put real structure and leadership behind our homeless response, and we kept it,” Mayor Martha Guerrero said in a news release. “This department reflects our belief that every person in West Sacramento deserves dignity, and every neighborhood deserves a city that shows up with a plan.”
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